I think about halfway through the race, feeling relaxed and easy still

It's probably somewhat unusual for someone to race as much as I do during marathon training but it's something I enjoy and I feel it keeps me sharp and motivated. Two weeks ago I took part in my first race of 2016, a favourite for me that I've done 4 times now, the Harriers Pioneer 8K. This is a fast local race that attracts a lot of serious athletes shaking out their legs for the beginning of the season, this year included one of Canada's fastest marathoners and also the Canadian female 10K record holder.

I was feeling confident on the morning of the race and had an "A" goal of an 8k PB as well as a "B" goal of beating my course record. The race starts with 2km of slight downhill and my plan was to start fast and try to bank some time. I did a 3:29 and 3:34 km to start the race then settled into a more conservative pace. Kilometre 3 is uphill and I slowed to 3:47. That would turn out to be my slowest pace of the day with a 3:42 average race pace and a 29:50 result which was 1:28 faster than my best on this course and an 8K PB by 1:12. The race ends in an uphill kilometre capped off with about 100m of sharp uphill on the driveway into the Saanichton Fairgrounds. It's a tough finish and having been familiar with the course I kept expecting to struggle, but troubles never came. I finished strong feeling like I had enough left in me to carry on for a few more kilometres. My time earned me 5th place in my age category which in this field of runners isn't too bad. I do hope to improve on that placement over the next races in the Vancouver Island Race Series.

Starting the year so well did a lot for my self confidence. I feel training is going well. It also oddly leaves me wondering if things will continue to improve. It's hard not to wonder if my body will unravel. I guess confidence doesn't come without caveats. I did a couple of new things before this race that are worth noting and I'll be playing with them to see if I continue to have success. I dropped my morning shakeout run (simply because I forgot) and had a simple bowl of Dorset Cereal and almond milk at 6am for breakfast. I didn't eat again before the 11am race with the exception of a cup of coffee and some water. I did a short 3km warmup and 2km cool down after the race as well as my usual strides and dynamic stretches. Lastly I tried racing for the first time in proper racing flats, a pair of Brooks T7's. They are much harder soled than I'm used too and weigh next to nothing. They are also too narrow for my feet so I have to tape up my two small toes as they get thrashed. I felt the shoes gave me some time advantage as they were so light and responsive (the hard soles felt like they pushed off better) but my feet took a beating even on this short race. I don't think I'd use them for much longer than 10km.

Lastly I'm reading a new book right now called "How Bad Do You Want It" by Matt Fitzgerald. I've felt for a long time that the weakest part of my running has been my mental game and I've spend a fair amount of time working on it. Some of the guidance in this book came in handy on race day. Generally I feel my past performances have fallen short of my fitness levels largely because I've mentally underperformed. I intend to fix that and this race was a good start.

​Next up is the Cobble Hill 10K race this weekend where I feel I should be able to keep my 8K pace for the slightly longer distance if all goes well. Of course each race day is different, you can't control weather, your stomach or just that days energy. I do have high hopes though. My PB on that course is 39:37 and my 10K PB is 38:03. I'll be sure to report back.